El Sistema program founder Steven Liu to leave job

Students from the El Sistema program, conducted by director Steven Liu, play with the Allentown Symphony Orchestra, April 11 and 12.

Students from the El Sistema program, conducted by director Steven Liu, play with the Allentown Symphony Orchestra, April 11 and 12. (ROBERT CORT PHOTOGRAPHY)

El Sistema Lehigh Valley is losing its leader

Steven Liu, founding program director of the Allentown Symphony Association's El Sistema Lehigh Valley, is leaving to return to his native Los Angeles, spend time with family and pursue career opportunities, Symphony Association Executive Director Sheila Evans announced.

El Sistema Lehigh Valley, the local version of a world-renowned program that uses music instruction to help underserved children, has flourished under Liu's stewardship. Housed at Roosevelt Elementary School and South Mountain Middle School in Allentown, the program that provides free music instruction, instruments, tutoring and other support every day after school has grown to include more than 100 students since its inception in 2011. The program has drawn national acclaim and grant support as well as partnerships with and honors from United Way, the Boys and Girls Club of America, local colleges and universities and others.

"We were very fortunate to have hired one of the original El Sistema fellows from the New England Conservatory," Evans says. "Steven has done a great job of starting the program and building it." The program has been entirely funded by grants and private giving by foundations and individuals, a remarkable accomplishment, Evans says.

Symphony Association Board member Kristine Burfeind, who was instrumental in bringing El Sistema to the Lehigh Valley, agreed. "It really has been a privilege to know Steven and to have him here. He has developed a fabulous program with a lot of hard work. Now we have well over 100 in the program and there is a long waiting list." The program, Burfeind says, has taught the children leadership skills that will serve them and their community for the rest of their lives.

Former Allentown School Superintendent Diane Scott, who worked with the Symphony Association to establish the program, also praised Liu for taking the program "from an idea to the success that it is today."

El Sistema Lehigh Valley performs

El Sistema Lehigh Valley preforms at Miller Symphony Hall in Allentown on Saturday. The international program brings more than 100 musicians to the area.

El Sistema Lehigh Valley preforms at Miller Symphony Hall in Allentown on Saturday. The international program brings more than 100 musicians to the area.

The key has been his relationship with the kids and their families, Scott says. "He will be sorely missed by the students and parents in the El Sistema program. He is like the Pied Piper," inspiring the children with his talent and energy.

Evans says that the search for a successor is in its final stages. "We need the right person to lead the program into the future. We will find someone who will continue to grow our national reputation and to expand ESLV as the kids in the program move up through the grades." The search committee, led by Evans, is made up of educators, board members, parents and other area nonprofits.

Liu says he is certain the program will continue to thrive. Three years of receiving nationally competitive funding from Getty Grants through the League of American Orchestras is a point of pride. But, he says, even more significant are the indicators of community impact, including measurable improvements in academics, attendance and behavior among the students in the program, the family involvement El Sistema has inspired, and the support from philanthropists, foundations and businesses.

"I love the kids. It's always been about them, not me," he says. "To see their growth has been truly inspiring and I am confident that the program will continue well with the support of a remarkable and vibrant community."